


Revelations of All Things

by ducktoothcollection



Category: Fallen London | Echo Bazaar
Genre: Gen, Parent-Child Relationship, Seeking Mr Eaten's Name (Fallen London), cute bats (animals not Masters), drafted via gameplay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:27:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23676853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ducktoothcollection/pseuds/ducktoothcollection
Summary: "I have never been fond of loyalty as a concept. If someone has been good to me, and it serves the greater good to do so, then of course I will stand by them. But I have found many times in my life when “loyalty” would have forced me to remain in the most abhorrent of situations. And it was hunger that saved me. And continues to save me. It is a burden to bear, but one I take on gladly."A Londoner with a mission xe cannot be distracted from allows hirself to take an interest in a newcomer to the city. As they come to each other's aid, they begin to talk about their lives, and the nature of personal commitment.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 3





	Revelations of All Things

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to play my two accounts off of each other, and they developed a dynamic I find very compelling! If you're interested in learning more about these characters, just want to talk, or need a social action, you can contact me in-game as [The Unco-operative Undergraduate](https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/The%20Unco-operative%20Undergraduate) or as [Cesario12](https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Cesario12), or in my own person on Discord @Cesario12#5474 or on Tumblr [@ducktoothcollection](https://www.ducktoothcollection.tumblr.com).

Buried deep within the darkest part of London, set into the side of a gargantuan lime-slick stalagmite carved into the shape of crumbling columns, was a window, shining brightly into the clammy gloom of the Neath. A bat alit on the sill, and chittered impatiently until a pair of sallow hands hauled up the windowpane and gently reached to untie the day’s mail. As the person inside crooned a soft tune, the bat rolled over in hir hand to have its belly scratched and wings massaged.

The letters were the usual. Invitations to high-society parties, all of which were not to be missed, no matter how identical each was to the others. Flyers for seances led by hir particular favorite charlatans. But tucked in among them was a letter addressed in an unfamiliar, youthful hand. The person in the stalagmite frowned, breaking a fungal cracker in half with one hand and offering it to the bat’s searching snout. Toby, the _Rattus faber_ who managed hir personal affairs, was usually scrupulous about keeping hir home address from admirers. . . and others. Would xe have to move again? Inside was a calling card and a short note:

_Dear Doctor,_

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_I received your address from a mutual friend of ours, a Soft-Hearted Widow who knows you as a substantial donor and thus perhaps willing to help a young man in a spot of trouble. I have found myself embroiled in some rather embarrassing scandal, and I wonder if you would be so good as to exert the smallest amount of your substantial influence to put some of the more unpleasant rumors to rest. But perhaps you would prefer to know me better first. I invite you to call upon me at your leisure in my lodgings, where I will be hiding until those who wish me harm find a new target of their wrath. I hope to meet with you at your earliest convenience._

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_Yours sincerely,_

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_Mr. Astrophel Hall_

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Attached was an ink sketch: a bright-eyed young man with slicked-back hair. Ordinarily, xe would have taken that to mean the letter was a sexual proposition, rather than merely the parasitic begging of a social climber realizing that the hot-air balloon of puffery he was riding had started to lose air. But there was something about the face that stopped hir from tossing the letter out the window and amusing hirself with watching it float to the cavern floor. A soft, bitter echo of something half-familiar. Without quite deciding to do so, xe found hirself sitting down to write a reply.

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_Dear young man,_

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_Yes, I would be willing to assist. We can discuss the details over tea. If you have a strong stomach, I could use some assistance myself—it is hard to practice medicine when one is oneself severely injured, and your assistance would greatly speed my healing. I look forward to getting to know you._

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_Yours sincerely,_

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_Cesario12_

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End file.
